Did You Lose A Bet?
by starkhasheart
Summary: Tony made a bet with Pepper. Tony lost.


Tony was known for not thinking before he opened his big mouth. He never considered the repercussions of his actions to affect him in any way possible. That was why, when he decided to make a bet with Pepper and lost, he decided to try and keep his giant mouth shut and never speak before he thought. Of course, he knew that his new decision would last a total of ten minutes, but at least he wanted to try and quell his excessive need to make poor choices.

He should have known, too; since when was Pepper wrong? But oh, no—he just had to prove himself and take the bet. He shouldn't have. He wasn't very good at winning bets anyway, and you would think from his past experiences he would stay away from them like they contained the plague and never approach on their territory ever again.

So when Pepper entered his workshop after her fingers danced over the keypad, typing the password that unlocked the door, he just kept his back to her and continued to toy with a little invention he had just started working on; something to keep his mind off the hell that Pepper was bring him. It was when she started to chuckle he swerved around in his chair, cocking a brow at her countenance. "What, Pepper?"

In her hand she held what looked like someone's dry cleaning. Tony shot up and scrambled away, hands up. "Get that away from me!"

She clucked her tongue and approached, setting down her clipboard and holding the dry cleaning in both hands. Her expression was smug, her smile self-satisfied, like torturing Tony with the consequences of losing the bet gave her a sort of sick pleasure. "Oh, come on, Tony. You lost the bet, so it's time to pay your dues."

"I _will_ pay my dues," he muttered, wishing he could just bury himself into the ground. "Name the amount, Pepper—I don't care about the zeroes."

She raised an eyebrow. "You're funny, Tony. I don't want your money, I want you in this." She held up the bag. "Come on, I think you would look adorable in this. Steve probably would think so, too."

"Oh, no you don't," Tony grumbled. "Don't drag Steve into this. That Capsicle has nothing to do with this."

Pepper smirked and tapped her chin. "I wouldn't be so sure about that, if I were you."

Tony's eyes narrowed. "What did you do?"

"Are you insinuating that I'm doing something?" Pepper took on a hurt tone as she closed the distance between the two, shoving the dry cleaning in his arms. "Why, Tony, I thought you trusted me, but I guess my assumptions were wrong."

"Wait—"

"Ah, ah, ah," Pepper said, wagging her finger in his face. She was still smiling, like this was the funniest she had ever seen in her life. And it probably was. "No complaining. You lost a bet, and now you have to take responsibility for it. So grow a pair and get dressed."

He moaned and took the dry cleaning bag, wondering if his life could get any worse.

Tony stared at the mirror, taking in one of the most scariest sights he had ever seen. Pepper really did know how to torture people, he realized, and made a mental note to never make a bet with her in the future.

Who was staring him back resembled nothing like the Tony Stark everyone knew today. He was dressed in a red and tan sweater with a white undershirt, its collar peeking out at his neck. He was wearing tan paints with dark brown dress shoes. He decided not to dwell on those and instead turned his attention to the glasses that Pepper was making him wear. They weren't real, obviously, but they were _nerd glasses_. This whole ensemble Pepper put him in screamed _nerd_. He tugged at the collar and stepped out of the bathroom, calling, "Okay, Pepper, I'm done, laugh all you wa—"

He halted and his face twisted in horror when he saw Steve was in the basement and Pepper was behind the glass, smiling and waving at him. She blew him a kiss and stepped away, hips swaying and her steps laced with arrogance. Tony guessed that she had spent too much time around him and had caught his disease.

"Oh wow," Steve breathed when he caught site of Tony's clothes. "Did you lose a bet?"

Tony felt his resolve crumbling and being blown away, like dust in a windstorm. He pushed up the glasses because they were sliding down his nose and muttered, "Maybe. Why do you ask?"

"Your clothes…you look…"

"Nerdy?" Tony supplied glumly. "Dorky?"

"I was going to say _cute_."

Tony halted and felt heat rise in his cheeks. "You can't really mean that, can you?"

Steve shrugged, closing the distance between them in a few short strides. "I mean what I say, Tony. Pepper called me down here for something; I guess this is what she meant."

_Damn you,_ he thought, feeling flustered. Captain America said he was cute. _Damn you, Pepper, and all that you stand for. Damn you. Damn you. Damn—_

"Tony?" Steve said, making Tony lose his train of thought. "Are you all right?"

"Hm?" Tony glanced around, then shook his head. "No, I'm not. I hate losing bets."

"Then why make them?" Steve asked.

Tony shrugged, feeling the material of the sweater move with him. "I dunno, because I don't think and I like torture, I guess."

"Torture?"

He gestured to his attire. "Do you honestly think that Tony Stark wants to be dressed like a fucking nerd? I mean, I knew Pepper was evil, but I didn't think that she would go this low. It's like she's making fun of me for some ungodly reason. I don't know how, but when I figure out, I swear, I'm going to—"

He was cut off when Steve bent down to press a kiss to his lips. Tony's heart skipped a beat, his cheeks flamed, and he just stood there like an invalid, motionless and stiff. Steve pulled away to gauge Tony's expression.

"I think it's cute," he murmured. "I think _you're_ cute."

Tony sucked in a breath and surprised himself when he kissed Steve back, arms wrapping around his thick waist. Steve chuckled against his lips and kissed back, running his fingers through Tony's hair. Tony sighed and broke the kiss, grinning up at Steve. "You think I'm cute?"

Steve rolled his eyes and laughed, pecking him on the cheek. "Of course I do, my little geek."

Tony snorted and muttered, "Don't call me that."

"What? It's the truth." Steve cupped his cheek. "You're a tech geek, and you're dressed like a nerd. My description can't get more apt that that, Tony."

Tony scowled and Steve chuckled, kissing him softly. "Stay adorable, nerd."


End file.
